Japan · 15 minutes · Vegetarian · Soup · For confident cooks

Kakitamajiru

Name: Kakitamajiru
Total time: 15 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Japanese
Ingredients: 2⅛ cups Broth (dashi, vegetable or meat broth, or bouillon cube dissolved in water); 1 Egg (beaten well); 1 tsp Soy sauce (for seasoning); ½ tsp Salt (for seasoning); Pepper, to taste; 1 tbsp Potato starch (mixed with 2 tbsp water to thicken the broth (optional)); 1 Spring onion (finely sliced, added at the end (optional)); 2 tbsp Panko breadcrumbs (stirred into the beaten egg (optional)); 1 tbsp Milk (stirred into the beaten egg (optional)); 4¼ oz Spinach (blanched, cut into 3 cm lengths (optional)); ⅛ oz Wakame (dried, rehydrated in water (optional))

For 2 servings · US units

Clear Japanese egg drop soup, on the table in fifteen minutes

Kakitamajiru is the soup for evenings when time is short: hot broth, a beaten egg poured in a thin stream, and suddenly there are soft ribbons of egg floating through it. In Japan it belongs to everyday cooking, and it happily takes whatever is on hand — including the broth left over from a Japanese-style pot-au-feu. Add spinach, wakame or spring onion if you want a little more in the bowl.

Servings2

Ingredients

2⅛ cupsBrothdashi, vegetable or meat broth, or bouillon cube dissolved in water
1Eggbeaten well
1 tspSoy saucefor seasoning
½ tspSaltfor seasoning
Pepperto taste
1 tbspPotato starchmixed with 2 tbsp water to thicken the broth (optional)
1Spring onionfinely sliced, added at the end (optional)
2 tbspPanko breadcrumbsstirred into the beaten egg (optional)
1 tbspMilkstirred into the beaten egg (optional)
4¼ ozSpinachblanched, cut into 3 cm lengths (optional)
⅛ ozWakamedried, rehydrated in water (optional)

Method

Beat the egg thoroughly in a bowl until white and yolk are completely combined — this is what gives you fine, even flakes later on.
If using, prepare the additions: blanch the spinach, drain it and cut it into pieces about 3 cm long, soak the dried wakame in water, and slice the spring onion into thin rings.
Heat the broth — dashi, vegetable or meat broth, or a bouillon cube dissolved in water — in a pot and bring it to a boil.
Season with salt, soy sauce and pepper.
If you want a slightly thickened soup, stir the potato starch smooth with water and stir it into the boiling broth until it binds lightly.
If using, add the spinach and wakame to the broth and bring everything back to a boil.
With the broth bubbling, pour the beaten egg in a thin stream in a circular motion over the surface, without stirring vigorously.
Let the egg set only briefly — bring the soup to a boil once and take it off the heat while the egg is still barely done. If using, scatter over the spring onion rings, and serve straight away.

Tips and variations

Thickening the broth with potato starch keeps the egg suspended in especially fine flakes; without starch the soup stays clear. A Western-influenced version stirs panko breadcrumbs and a spoonful of milk into the egg before pouring it in, and uses a bouillon cube in water as the base. Pre-cooked spinach and soaked wakame both work well as additions. If you have made a pot-au-feu, start the soup with the leftover broth and finish it with spring onion. Ladle it into warmed bowls right away, while the egg is still tender.

Allergens

Contains: Eggs, Cereals containing gluten, Soybeans

May contain if you use the optional ingredients: Milk (including lactose)

These notes follow from this recipe's ingredient list. Ready-made products and brands may contain further allergens — please check the packaging yourself.

Something not right?

This recipe was put together from independent sources and checked before publishing. Even so, a mistake can slip through — an amount that does not add up, a step that does not work as written. If you spot something, write to us: we will look into it and put it right.

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